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Usability Professionals’ Association Supports Consideration of Voting System Usability and Effectiveness in California Recall Decision
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, SEPTEMBER 16, 2003
The Usability Professionals’ Association (UPA), a society of professionals
dedicated to making software and other products easier for people to use,
announced today that it supports the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’
consideration of the effectiveness of the voting experience in its decision
to delay the gubernatorial recall election in California. The association
also called for a full evaluation of all US voting systems to be certain
that voters are able to cast a proper vote with ease and efficiency.
Whitney Quesenbery, Director of the UPA’s Voting
and Usability Project, an outreach project designed to provide its
membership with standards and best practices for evaluating the ease-of-use
of voting systems internationally, cited concern over punch card and other
systems, as well as the rush to conduct an election featuring a long,
difficult ballot.
“Once again, the usability of a long-used voting system has been
called into question by our judiciary,” said Ms. Quesenbery. “It
is crucial that all voting systems in the US be properly evaluated for
usability.”
The difficulty of punch card voting has been cited as a key reason for
confusion in the 2000 presidential election. She cited the court decision’s
statement that as many as 40,000 voters might unintentionally miscast
their punch-card style ballot. This staggering figure could easily mean
the difference in an election because of difficulty that voters may experience
using the punch card ballot. A voter attempting to cast a ballot at the
polls has no way to be sure the vote has been properly punched.
“The international standard definition of usability cites the ability
to work in a manner that is effective, efficient and satisfying,”
said Elizabeth Rosenzweig, President of UPA. “What could be less
effective than to leave the voting booth not knowing whether your vote
will actually be counted?”
The introduction of new voting systems may not prove to be a universal
remedy without proper evaluation, Rosenzweig noted. The court noted that
any transition to new systems be well-thought out and orderly, with adequate
time for training. The UPA believes that usability evaluation and user-centered
design should be a part of that process, according to Ms. Quesenbery.
“The US Supreme Court rightly noted that any restriction to voting
strikes at the heart of representative democracy,” said Josephine
Scott, a member of the Voting and Usability project. “If voters
cannot easily determine how to cast a proper ballot, even after years
of voting on the same system, our democratic process is weakened. By maximizing
the ease-of-use of our systems, we have the opportunity to make democracy
stronger.”
The Usability Professionals' Association is an international, non-profit, professional association with more than 1700 members in the US and 35 other countries. Members are specialists in evaluating and designing products that are easy to learn and use. The organization provides its members with a wide variety of professional services. Through outreach the UPA:
- Shares information about the skills and approach of usability professionals in meeting needs for usable products.
- Acts as an advocate for usability in consumer, corporate and governmental software, products and web sites.
- Educates the general public about the usability.
For more information, contact:
The Usability Professionals'
Association
140 N. Bloomingdale Rd.
Bloomingdale, IL 60108-1017
email: office@upassoc.org
web: http://www.usabilityprofessionals.org